October 28, 2012

Rmoney Never Sleeps

This investigation was supported by the Investigative Fund at the
Nation Institute and by the Puffin Foundation. Elements of it appear in
Palast’s new book, Billionaires & Ballot Bandits: How to Steal an Election in 9 Easy Steps (Seven Stories). Research assistance by Zach D. Roberts, Ari Paul, Nader Atassi and Eric Wuestewald.

Mitt Romney’s opposition to the auto bailout has haunted him on the
campaign trail, especially in Rust Belt states like Ohio. There, in
September, the Obama campaign launched television ads blasting Romney’s
November 2008 New York Times op-ed, “Let Detroit Go Bankrupt.”
But Romney has done a good job of concealing, until now, the fact that
he and his wife, Ann, personally gained at least $15.3 million from the
bailout—and a few of Romney’s most important Wall Street donors made
more than $4 billion. Their gains, and the Romneys’, were
astronomical—more than 3,000 percent on their investment.

It all starts with Delphi Automotive, a former General Motors
subsidiary whose auto parts remain essential to GM’s production lines.
No bailout of GM—or Chrysler, for that matter—could have been successful
without saving Delphi. So, in addition to making massive loans to
automakers in 2009, the federal government sent, directly or indirectly,
more than $12.9 billion to Delphi—and to the hedge funds that had
gained control over it.

One of the hedge funds profiting from that bailout— $1.28 billion so
far—is Elliott Management, directed by Paul Singer. According to TheWall Street Journal,
Singer has given more to support GOP candidates—$2.3 million—than
anyone else on Wall Street this election season. His personal giving is
matched by that of his colleagues at Elliott; collectively, they have
donated $3.4 million to help elect Republicans this season, while giving
only $1,650 to Democrats. And Singer is influential with the GOP
presidential candidate; he’s not only an informal adviser but, according
to the Journal, his support was critical in helping push Representative Paul Ryan onto the ticket.

Singer, whom Fortune magazine calls a “passionate defender
of the 1%,” has carved out a specialty investing in distressed firms and
distressed nations, which he does by buying up their debt for pennies
on the dollar and then demanding payment in full. This so-called
“vulture investor” received $58 million on Peruvian debt that he snapped
up for $11.4 million, and $90 million on Congolese debt that he bought
for a mere $20 million. In the process, he’s built one of the largest
private equity firms in the nation, and over decades he’s racked up an
unusually high average return on investments of 14 percent.

Other GOP presidential hopefuls chased Singer’s endorsement, but Mitt
chased Singer with his own checkbook, investing at least $1 million
with Elliott through Ann Romney’s blind trust (it could be far more, but
the Romneys have declined to disclose exactly how much). Along the way,
Singer gained a reputation, according to Fortune, “for strong-arming his way to profit.” That is certainly what happened at Delphi.

We turn now to a major new
exposé on the cover of The Nation magazine called "Mitt Romney’s Bailout
Bonanza: How He Made Millions from the Rescue of Detroit."
Investigative reporter Greg Palast reveals how Republican presidential
nominee Mitt Romney made some $15 million on the auto bailout and that
three of Romney’s top donors made more than $4 billion for their hedge
funds from the bailout. Palast’s report is part of a film-in-progress
called "Romney’s Bailout Bonanza." Palast is the author of several
books, including recently released New York Times bestseller,
"Billionaires & Ballot Bandits: How to Steal an Election in 9 Easy
Steps." [includes rush transcript]

Greg Palast, investigative reporter who has tracked Romney’s "vulture" fund partners for five years for BBC Television’s Newsnight. He is the author of the recently released New York Times bestseller, Billionaires & Ballot Bandits: How to Steal an Election in 9 Easy Steps. His new Nation
exposé is called "Mitt Romney’s Bailout Bonanza: How Mitt and Ann Made
Millions — and Mitt’s Hedge Fund Donors Made Billions — from the
Auto-Industry Rescue that He Condemned."

Comments

This investigation was supported by the Investigative Fund at the
Nation Institute and by the Puffin Foundation. Elements of it appear in
Palast’s new book, Billionaires & Ballot Bandits: How to Steal an Election in 9 Easy Steps (Seven Stories). Research assistance by Zach D. Roberts, Ari Paul, Nader Atassi and Eric Wuestewald.

Mitt Romney’s opposition to the auto bailout has haunted him on the
campaign trail, especially in Rust Belt states like Ohio. There, in
September, the Obama campaign launched television ads blasting Romney’s
November 2008 New York Times op-ed, “Let Detroit Go Bankrupt.”
But Romney has done a good job of concealing, until now, the fact that
he and his wife, Ann, personally gained at least $15.3 million from the
bailout—and a few of Romney’s most important Wall Street donors made
more than $4 billion. Their gains, and the Romneys’, were
astronomical—more than 3,000 percent on their investment.

It all starts with Delphi Automotive, a former General Motors
subsidiary whose auto parts remain essential to GM’s production lines.
No bailout of GM—or Chrysler, for that matter—could have been successful
without saving Delphi. So, in addition to making massive loans to
automakers in 2009, the federal government sent, directly or indirectly,
more than $12.9 billion to Delphi—and to the hedge funds that had
gained control over it.

One of the hedge funds profiting from that bailout— $1.28 billion so
far—is Elliott Management, directed by Paul Singer. According to TheWall Street Journal,
Singer has given more to support GOP candidates—$2.3 million—than
anyone else on Wall Street this election season. His personal giving is
matched by that of his colleagues at Elliott; collectively, they have
donated $3.4 million to help elect Republicans this season, while giving
only $1,650 to Democrats. And Singer is influential with the GOP
presidential candidate; he’s not only an informal adviser but, according
to the Journal, his support was critical in helping push Representative Paul Ryan onto the ticket.

Singer, whom Fortune magazine calls a “passionate defender
of the 1%,” has carved out a specialty investing in distressed firms and
distressed nations, which he does by buying up their debt for pennies
on the dollar and then demanding payment in full. This so-called
“vulture investor” received $58 million on Peruvian debt that he snapped
up for $11.4 million, and $90 million on Congolese debt that he bought
for a mere $20 million. In the process, he’s built one of the largest
private equity firms in the nation, and over decades he’s racked up an
unusually high average return on investments of 14 percent.

Other GOP presidential hopefuls chased Singer’s endorsement, but Mitt
chased Singer with his own checkbook, investing at least $1 million
with Elliott through Ann Romney’s blind trust (it could be far more, but
the Romneys have declined to disclose exactly how much). Along the way,
Singer gained a reputation, according to Fortune, “for strong-arming his way to profit.” That is certainly what happened at Delphi.

We turn now to a major new
exposé on the cover of The Nation magazine called "Mitt Romney’s Bailout
Bonanza: How He Made Millions from the Rescue of Detroit."
Investigative reporter Greg Palast reveals how Republican presidential
nominee Mitt Romney made some $15 million on the auto bailout and that
three of Romney’s top donors made more than $4 billion for their hedge
funds from the bailout. Palast’s report is part of a film-in-progress
called "Romney’s Bailout Bonanza." Palast is the author of several
books, including recently released New York Times bestseller,
"Billionaires & Ballot Bandits: How to Steal an Election in 9 Easy
Steps." [includes rush transcript]

Greg Palast, investigative reporter who has tracked Romney’s "vulture" fund partners for five years for BBC Television’s Newsnight. He is the author of the recently released New York Times bestseller, Billionaires & Ballot Bandits: How to Steal an Election in 9 Easy Steps. His new Nation
exposé is called "Mitt Romney’s Bailout Bonanza: How Mitt and Ann Made
Millions — and Mitt’s Hedge Fund Donors Made Billions — from the
Auto-Industry Rescue that He Condemned."